The Phillies arrived for their first homestand of the season a week ago as a team down in the dumps with a manager already in the doghouse. Having lost four of their first five games to the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets on the road, a fast recovery was needed or the Phillies risked a spring of listening to home crowds spelling out the name of their favorite football team just to ease the misery.
A favorable schedule that included dates with the Miami Marlins and Cincinnati Reds, possibly the two worst teams in baseball, made that possible.